‘Dexter’ Series Finale: Dexter Finally Pays For His Sins

A storm is coming — literally. Dexter thought he could change, but all the chaos erupting around him suggests otherwise. Has he dug himself a hole as deep as Biscayne Bay, or will he find a way out of it all once more for old time’s sake? This is it folks, enjoy it.

Last episode, Dexter (Michael C. Hall) was well on his way towards a happy ending. Not so fast. He forgot The Code (maybe a long time ago) and now he’s on the verge of either being murdered, being arrested, or watching his sister (Jennifer Carpenter) die. Never a dull moment, Dex!

Thankfully it seems the bullet that Debra took “bounced around,” but it missed all of her major organs — she’s going to be okay.

Dexter Says His Goodbyes

In the hospital, Debra and Dexter do have a touching moment where they seem to finally completely accept each other and forgive each other for all the destruction they’ve caused each other over the years. Dex says goodbye, Debra says, “I’ll see you soon,” and I am crying.

Dexter — appropriately, and maybe ominously — seems to be saying goodbye to a lot of people. He puts Hannah (Yvonne Strahovsky) and Harrison on an evacuation bus so they can escape before Hurricane Laura hits. It’s a little nerve-racking that he’s sort of shedding all of these secondary characters who have been attached to him (and arguably dragging the Bay Harbor Butcher down) for so many seasons. Again, the message may tragically be that Dexter can never actually have any real relationships. He’s a solitary man.

Dexter Vs. Saxon: The Final Showdown

Because Dexter will always be cleaning up messes. He’s got a pretty enormous one on his plate right now — Oliver Saxon (Darri Ingolfsson). Saxon more or less gives himself up when he tries to bumrush Debra at the hospital — but it was suspiciously easy.

Moments later we find out that Debra’s surgery had complications. Because of a blood clot, a doctor tells Dexter that Debra suffered a major stroke that has deprived her of most motor skills and mental capacity. This is heartbreaking (especially with the episode’s pointed flashbacks twisting the knife).

With Debra’s impending life as a vegetable fresh in his mind, we’re ready for the real showdown — Dexter vs. Saxon, in an interrogation room at Miami Metro. I don’t think I’ve seen this sort of vengeance in Dexter’s eyes since the first season. Dex tells Sax that he finally sees who he is — a murderer.

“I’m here to kill you with that pen,” Dexter tells Saxon, moments before he kills him with that pen. Now’s probably a good time to point out that Dexter did all of this without turning off the surveillance camera. Though Dexter’s swift dispatching of Saxon doesn’t go unnoticed, police let him off on self-defense, because everyone hated that Saxon dude anyway.

The End Of Debra & Dexter Morgan

With that little bit of business taken care of, Dexter heads back to the hospital. This time he gives Debra a real goodbye, finally apologizing for everything he’s done — mostly to her. And with that, Dexter makes his final kill. “I can’t leave you like this,” Dexter says before shutting off Deb’s life support.

As Hurricane Laura approaches, Dexter lays Deb’s body out to sea, like so many of his victims before her. But she’s not going alone — Dexter’s gut-wrenching goodbye phone call to his son confirms that. As the ocean swallows Debra, the eye of the storm swallows Dexter.

“I destroy everyone I love,” Dexter laments before heading to his death.

Or should I say, apparent death? One last scene of this relentless series shows Dexter in the Pacific Northwest (maybe?). He’s now a very bearded, very alone lumberjack. And fade to black.

‘Dexter’ Series Finale: What Did You Think?

I’m not sure I can even process this, or begin to understand how Dexter survived driving into the eye of a hurricane. So let’s just raise our glasses to an often misguided, but always fun TV series. I’m not sure they could have ended it any better.